“God will not permit troubles to come upon us, unless He has a specific plan by which great blessing can come out of the difficulty.” Peter Marshall

There is this story about a man who found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared in the cocoon, and so he watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through the little hole. At one point, it seemed as though the butterfly had stopped making progress. In fact, it appeared as though it could go no further, so the man decided to help the butterfly. He snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. However, it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man expected that the wings would enlarge and expand to support the body, which would contract in time, but neither happened. Instead, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never flew. What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon was God’s way of forcing fluid from the butterfly’s body into its wings, so that it could fly once free form the cocoon.

Each child in our country has about eighteen years to prepare for living in the real world outside of the home and school. During these years, the child is allocated a certain number of experiences, which serve as teachers. These experiences include consequences, which can at times be somewhat painful. The pain attached to these natural consequences causes the child to remember and reconsider the decision made at the time. As these memories pile one on top of the other, they form a memory bank, which guides cause-and-effect thinking. Often the struggle we face as parents is the temptation to step in and rescue the child, robbing him or her of the chance to learn from an experience when the price tag is small. For example, young children, who make poor decisions, usually pay the price of being cold for a short period, being hungry for a little while, getting a reduced grade on a homework assignment, or have difficulty with their peer relationships. I would like all the kids who have any association with me to have as much practice, and the benefit of as many “real life learning experiences,” as possible while the price tags are still affordable. Here at school, we build these experiences into the daily program, by establishing a number of rules, which force the children to think and make decisions in advance. Allowing children the opportunity to solve their own problems, guiding them through these experiences with empathy and natural consequence, helps them develop habits regarding problem-solving and decision-making that sets them up to become butterfly’s in the future.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong and we could never fly!

I hope you find this helpful. May you find encouragement this week from the Lord. Thanks for reading!

“Don’t worry that children never listen to you. Worry that they are always watching you.” Robert Fulghum

We have almost completed a week of formal testing. This week makes everyone a little nervous which seems kind of funny to me in that we use tools everyday to measure learning. The learning process is an amazing event. There are many ways to try to understand why and how we learn from Learning Styles theory to Gardner’s theory on the Eight Intelligences. Each has a perspective that gives insight into a particular niche of truth about the process of development. Yet with all of this information, one technique above all others seems to be the most effective in training—that being by example or the effect of being a role model. We all learn from models, examples of how it is done. When engineers design a prototype, they often make a model to see if their idea works. Models are used everyday as an attempt to explain and bring understanding to the world and events around us. Most times, we do not even realize that someone is watching. It is only later, when we are watching the one who previously was the “watcher” as they act out what they saw us doing or saying that we are delighted, surprised, or saddened.

Jesus, when teaching His disciples said to them, “Come, follow me…” meaning don’t just trail after me, but do what I do, be what I am, become like me. He showed them how to love people regardless of their cultural background, occupation, or tarnished lifestyle. He gave them an example of a suffering servant. We would do well to remember that there are eyes watching what we say, and what we do. They are learning how to live, by watching the very example of living that we represent.

So, who is your model? Who is your mentor? What do you believe that your children’s children will know about you? It is not about trying to be perfect. It is about realizing that what you do and say lives beyond the now, and knowing that if you point to truth the path will be clear for those who follow.

I hope you find this helpful. May you find encouragement this week from the Lord. Thanks for reading!

“As we know Jesus better, his divine power gives us everything we need for living a godly life.” 2 Peter 1:3

Do you ever wonder when you will be caught up? It seems after the completion of one event that there is always another one just around the corner demanding more energy, creativity, and enthusiasm. Sometimes having events one after another is energizing. It is like a constant flow of adrenalin that pumps you up and keeps you going. Yet at other times, like a person crossing a great desert without water desperately looking for the next oasis, a busy schedule can leave you feeling drained and used up.

It is at the dry times that I try to remember a few key things. First, I remember, “I belong to Him.” I belong to God. In Ephesians 1:4-5 it says, “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure (NLT).” What an awesome fact that God chose me...He chose you as well!

The second thing I remind myself is that “He is in control.” God is in control. Psalms 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him (NLT),” and Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them (NLT).” What a wonderful promise to know. Everything is God’s and He desires to work things in such a way as not to bring harm to anyone, but so that His plan is accomplished.

The last thing I tell myself is taken from Romans 8:35-39, and can be summarized in the statement, “Nothing can separate me from His love.” This brings me great comfort in times when I am frustrated, confused, or discouraged.

I want to finish with a quote from Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China. He said, “Many Christians estimate difficulty in the light of their own resources, and thus they attempt very little, and they always fail. All giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on His power and His presence to be with them.” Just as King David, who said, “The battle is the Lord’s” (1 Samuel 17:47), we too need to understand that Jesus is our Source, and we can be directly connected to Him. May you know God’s peace, power, and love in your life!

I hope you find this helpful. May you find encouragement when you wait upon the Lord. Thanks for reading!

“Do not fret—it only causes harm.” Psalm 37:8b

I hope last week’s break was great for you and your family. My family and I did something a bit unusual in that we took a “stay-cation” (a vacation at home). I turned off my cell phone, and the computer and took a break from the hectic schedule I have been working lately. It was great! Basically it was a week of Saturdays. I worked mainly in my yard and on our house. While pulling weeds, and cleaning gutters, I found myself musing over Psalm 37. If you are in need of encouragement, I would point you to Psalm 37. If you are in the place where you are feeling the compulsion to conform, or the temptation to compare yourself with others, or facing some kind of crisis or tough decision then you most likely could benefit from reading and digesting Psalm 37. David brings sound teaching and perspective that helps one to avoid the mistakes of reactionary thinking and decisions.

“Trust in the Lord and do good” (v.3). How great it is to reaffirm God’s sovereignty, recognizing that He is in control. There is nothing beyond His ability, and we need to do what is right despite what others do and or say.

“Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness” (v.3). Cultivate a faithful practice of spending time with God. It is in knowing God more deeply that we can face the difficult times with victory. We need to know His character so well that we will not allow the circumstances around us to confuse our thinking. Refuse to move quickly through your relationship with Him. It is when we spend time waiting upon the Lord that we find renewed strength, courage, and vision. He alone is the one who can feed us with the food that will satisfy (John 4).

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart” (v.4). Make God a priority in your life. Seek His values, and the promise is that He will reward and satisfy you in the end.

“Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun” (v.5—6). We are charged to confide and depend upon God. When we do this, we can trust that He is in control of the results.

“Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when others succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes” (v.7). Essentially, it is when we are quiet and patient in the Lord’s presence that we can gain a healthy perspective. When we fret, or compare, it often can lead to inappropriate motivation or action.

Lastly, “Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it only causes harm. For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the Lord, They shall inherit the earth” (v.8—9). So often anger is not dealt with correctly and it leads to offense. When not worked out anger leads to undesirable results. Place your hope in God trusting that in His time, He will guide and use your decisions.

I hope you find this helpful. May you find encouragement when you wait upon the Lord.
Thanks for reading!